In August 1988, Alexandria Textiles, Inc. was born as the engine for Jane Porter's creative textile design. Jane's paternal grandfather, Joseph Najarian, a 1912 Olympian Gymnast from Alexandria, Egypt, came to the United States in the 1920's to start a silk ribbon mill in Greene, NY. Today, the Najarian family still runsthe last narrow goods mill in the USA:
Najarian Manufacturing Company.
Jane Porter's passion for textiles began at an early age. Growing up near New York City, her grandmother, Ardemis Bedrosian, a fashion designer in her own right, taught Jane about excellent fabrics. Together they designed and sewed all of Jane's dance and party dresses in the 1950's and 60's. Jane always dreamed of becoming a fashion designer and launched her first commercial line of clothing in 1968, making and selling dresses in egyptian cotton.
A member of Colgate University's first coed class in 1970, she pursued costume design for the University Theatre. After careers in Nursing and Investment Management, she returned to her true love--textile design. Studying at Philadelphia Guild for Handweavers, she learned to spin, weave and dye with natural dyes, and then opened a school for the fiber arts in Chadds Ford, PA.
Mentor and Master Dyer Michele Wiplinger of Earthues, helped Jane focus her passion on printing fabric with natural dyes in the summer of 2000 during a master class in Michele's Seattle studio. Loving to dress up for work, she returned to her first love of fashion design. Her lines for the professional urban woman reflected a comfortable elegance in fabrics that travelled well. She is a member of Atelier Designers and One of a Kind Show.
On the following pages you can see the Jane's different collections that were sold in boutiques in the USA. Currently Jane is creating "Wild Feminine Fiber" fashion accessories at Porter Studios and Fine Arts Gallery, a wonderful space to create, teach and share ideas with creative souls.
|
 |
| Fashion Accessories with Sculpture by Gretchen Ewart |
|
|
Latest Top (5) News
|
Always Leave Room for the Other Guy
On this Father's Day, I think of my dad and his wisdom about the economy. Dad was an amazing business person, he had a sixth sense about what was about to happen between human beings.. His skill of building relationships was one of the strong foundations he imparted on me. He believed in fairness, negotiation, not bulldozing someone and taking them for what they had. Dad said, "you always have to leave room for the other guy. He has to make a living, too." This value is especially important now.
Being an entrepreneur since age five, my self concept is that I sit on a beautiful carpet in a bazaar selling my wares. It's who I am. I am keenly aware of markets in all sizes and shapes... how things trade between companies, individuals, online auctions, or set prices.
We are moving into an age of online purchases of sales that will overcome bricks and mortar very soon. What I see in these markets is a vast array of pricing--fair, cheap, and clueless--way overpriced because the person did not bother to do the market research.
What Dad taught me was to buy things that I loved because I might be stuck with them.
"Buy things at a good price, then mark them up enough to make a decent profit," he said," but leave some room for the buyer to succeed too."
Dad understood market dynamics. To keep the cash flow moving you have to price things right. If you charge too much, or what the "book value" is, then the item might sit there for a very long time and you will be forced to lower it. Dad was always about cash flow... "that is what keeps the economy moving--if money does not move around, we stagnate."
I think about this and my current endeavor of running a gallery in Hamilton, New York. Art is not selling, people do not have the money. Even if they are well off, they are hanging on to cash. I feel that one of the biggest mistakes artists make is that they do not know the value of their work in the market. Artists do not take the time to see what else is out there, what prices things are selling at all over the country. My feeling is that alot of work is overpriced. A painting may have taken them months to complete. If the artist figures the price of a painting based on the time they spent and cost of materials, it may be way off the current market. This is true if the work is good or bad. An artist should not define themselves by the dollar amount at which they sell their work, it should be the quality of the work.
We are in a period of deflation. Everyone has been forced to cut back, alot have lost jobs, or work two or three to make ends meet. Deciding to work for less, in my opinion, acknowledges reality.
We need to get the market moving again, and the only way to do it is to come up with a new body of high quality work that you can sell at affordable prices.
Sun, 20 Jun 2010 21:50:00 +0000
The Artisans of Mid Century
About one month ago I found a pin in a junk shop, it was very well made and sculptural. Researching led me to discover a world I grew up in but never knew, the 1950's and 60's, post war boom of American Costume Jewelry. Manufactured in the USA, Providence , RI was the center of this beautiful art form.
The elegance, quality, workmanship of this era is unsurpassed by anything we are doing now in affordable fashion. In fact, we are not doing anything, because it is all made in China.
The more I look at the pieces by Vendome, DeLizza and Elster, (Juliana), Coro, BSK, Trifari, Lisner, I see dreams of my parents' generation -- making a better life for their kids... ie, us baby boomers.
And they did. We are the richest generation in our country but sadly we will not be passing this down to our offspring because we do not make things in America like this anymore.
Each piece of authentic vintage American jewelry preserves an America where work ethic and quality reigned. Our parents were busy, they took pride in making things. I looked at the old photographs of women stringing beads in the 1950's factories. At a table with other women they create sparkly necklaces that embody dreams of glamour and attaining a better life. Of course, the industry was not without labor abuses, as some owners worked their women long hours without benefits. But what I want to focus on is the quality of the work which is derived from dedication to making something excellent.
Looking at the photographs, I imagine the pride in making a beautiful creation. When you work with gorgeous materials, it can't help you feel good. I know that if I am surrounded by beautiful fabrics and threads I feel that I want to produce the most creative item I can imagine. All this is a process of course, as each item we produce leads us to the next one, we learn and master through commitment.
Growing up near Manhattan in the 1950's, "What's the latest" was an assumed state of mind.
It meant, who is making what, what new computer is being designed in Poukeepsie, what new fabrics were on the shelves in B. Altmans's, or what's chic in Vogue Magazine. Back then we made our clothing from gorgeous fabrics milled in the USA. With great sewing patterns used over by every cousin, aunt, and friend, you could customize a unique dress from the same pattern. If you could not afford to buy nice ready to wear, there was an option for you. Our family did not have the money to be big shoppers, but we absorbed the bulk of "What's the Latest" by DIY. As a young lady, my hope was that I would buy ready made in the future with increased economic prosperity.
Mid twentieth century costume jewelry regaled an exuberance and elegance of design, with a splash of humor reminding one not to take oneself so seriously. The clarity of the rhinestones, the handmade Art Glass, the movement of color and shape sparkle happiness. It was a brief time of hope, innocence, and fantasy, yielding to the Cuban Missile Crisis, civil rights unrest and Vietnam in the 1960's.
Do we have dreams now or do we just fear? The oil spills, terrorist plots, what will the news bring next?
I feel like we trample from one tulip craze to the next, never learning from the past or taking time to think. Scrambling to survive, or so we think. Layering debt that our children will pass on to theirs, I am sure they will not have something they can truly call their own.
I am collecting pieces of this genre because it reminds me of an idealism and when Americans actually made something. Their sculptural qualities, color and elegant design also inspire me for my artwork. You may soon see screen prints on my fabrics hinting at this luxurious past.
DeLizza and Elster Milk Glass with Copper Fluss
Vendome Art Glass
Unsigned Art Glass Bracelet
 Juliana Red Siam Brooch
Mon, 31 May 2010 18:44:00 +0000
Working Backward
While the antique tribal rug show is still up in our gallery, I have been moved to depths by the artists who wove them, how they loved their animals, the efforts to collect the dyes, spin the yarn and knot the rugs that were their home. The collection transformed my perception about "oriental rugs". Each rug is the home of an ancestor, the paintings detailing their life. Nomadic or village , you see the pride and love they transfer onto a necessary structure, the only essential structure, the textile.. As I have always said, what do you do with a flat piece of fabric?
Working Backward
Rolled in home
my essence of luxury
Was the abrash painted before the spinners song
You have to unweave to know
Green in the ancient abode
Mark of the dyer
pomegranate's fate made him
How far for stones that transformed plants' hue
or pilgrimage for treasured insects
Who tended wild roots of turkey red
three years would pass before harvest
Earth and heavens, temperment of soil,
water fluid or drought
defined softness and color
When did she have time to weave
the daily routines kept her hands busy
like a 21st century woman
her hands forming knots of forms
layers of meaning in stripes
like sedimentary rock
unearthing but preserving the past
You hear your drums
foot patterns make paths
in lyrical borders that dream
your next sojourn
Palette of treasure records
bonds with all around
and happy animals' souls
eternally bed you
Mon, 03 May 2010 14:32:00 +0000
New Dimensions
I've had the pleasure of becoming a member of HandEye Magazine, edited by Keith Recker.
Rachel Biel of TAFA list sent out a blurb on it... so I click on and am blown away by the articles that cover so many different ideas, history, techniques--permuations of thought that stretch your imagination. Thank you Keith for bringing this to us!
All textile addicts, please go to HandEye now! You will not be disappointed. It's a new way of life, a new beginning for yourself and our planet. If you enjoy Selvedge, you will love HandEye.
An example of how valuable the articles are--Michele Wipplinger of Earthues shares her secrets of dyeing with indigo. I studied with Michele for 10 years.... this is a fantastic article, brought to you by HandEye.
Energy and excitement from discovering talented, caring humans... just got to keep myself plowed with energy drinks so that I can keep focusing on actually DOING something versus thinking about new ways to do things.
Couldn't resist sharing some of the NUNO fabrics that I have collected over the years...see the lead story of Handeye. There is an exhibit of their fabrics at The Textile Museum in Washington, DC.
Tue, 02 Mar 2010 12:23:00 +0000
Making a Mess--My Creative Process
I'm not sure of the prospect of snow tonight is making me punchy, but the atmosphere is changing rapidly and it is a wierd day.
People often ask me what is the process I use to create fashion accessories? Basically my mind is going all the time putting together fabrics, ideas, techniques. I think having as many interesting and off beat fabrics is essential.
Then I make a mess, on the floor. All my materials are in boxes, they are labeled accordingly, such as "French Chantilly Lace" , "Italian Wool Lace" or "Embroidered Velvets". I pull out what I think I might like to use.
I have one starting point, it can be an object, a fabric, a photo in a book. I use the colorway of whatever I pick as my basis for combining fabrics and textures. Most of the time I have no idea of how anything will come out, I just start cutting randomly, nothing is straight, it is very intuitive. I then start playing with the pieces and laying them out. Once I've finalized the design, I sew and sew and sew until I'm happy. And then it goes through my finishing process that I described in an earlier blog.
I'll work like this until I am bored, then one day it will make it's way back into the organized boxes when I get the urge to experiment.
Here's a few pics from today:
My family is dismayed at the mess I make, there is not one flat surface in the house that I don't cover. I think they are relieved when I go up to the gallery in Hamilton.
Mon, 22 Feb 2010 20:05:00 +0000
|
|
|
|
